“Provides an overview of the landscape history, evaluation of the historic landscape, and guidance for treatment and use of the cultural landscape resources associated with the property. This report provides a comprehensive understanding of the physical evolution of the historic landscape, as a framework for future management decisions.” – The Friends of Lake View Hill Park played a major role in guiding the project.

Link to Full Report on Dane County Parks website – Note that this a 132 page, 36MB File and may take several minutes to load

Prepared by Ken Saiki Design and adopted by the Dane County Board of Supervisors on August 6, 2009 (Res. 74, 09-10)

“Lake View Hill Park is intended to be a passive recreation use park, linking the neighborhood to a valuable urban green space and providing a system of low-impact trails within the site. The Park’s adjacency to residential neighborhoods and schools creates opportunities to enhance the site’s diverse educational potential. The 2008-2009 master planning effort marks the first formal plan created to envision the future of the Park.”

Over the years many have wondered and hoped that Native American Indian mounds were present on the hill and anecdotal stories continue to surface about an underground cave structure. In 2008, as part of the Dane County Parks Master Plan process, a study was done to determine if there was any real evidence to support either mounds or caves. The study is a fascinating read about the property but unfortunately finds no evidence of mounds or caves.

The sketch below was drawn by a patient at the Sanatorium in 1946 and published in the patient newsletter called “The Wheeze.” The sketch provides a great idea of what the grounds were like and also that there was a quite a sense of community among the patients.